Mixed Martial Arts Thread (UFC and others)

[SirFozzie]

UFC 67 results
Dustin Hazelett d. Diego Saraiva by UD
Ryoto Machida d. Sam Hoger by UD
Frankie Edgar d. Tyson Griffin by UD
Terry Martin d. Jorge Rivera KO R1
Patrick Cote d. Scott Smith by UD
Quinton "Rampage" Jackson d. Marvin Eastman by TKO R2
Roger Huerta d John Halverson by TKO R1 (There was some controversey as to the ending)
Mirko Cro Cop d. Eddie Sanchez by TKO R1 in a very one-sided fight.
Anderson Silva d. Travis Lutter by submission (triangle choke+elbows) in Rd 2

Lutter had failed to make weight (was 1.5 pounds over the limit on the first weigh in, and could only shave .5 pounds off in the two hours between weigh ins). The fight was non title, and Lutter was docked 10% of his pay (5% to the sanctioning board, 5% To Silva).

Edgar versus Griffin was the fight of the night, it wasn't scheduled to air, but since there was a lot of early finishes, they showed it last, which was a great move.

Cro Cop looked DOMINANT, but this was a mismatch. Wonder if they are going to give Cro Cop a couple more victims before they through him at Liddell.

I think despite Rampage looking less then brilliant in his win, they're going to fast track him at Sylvia, especially if Couture doesn't beat him at UFC 68.. the HW division is slow right now.

Showtime's new MMA promotion (ELITE XC) debuts this weekend.

Main Card Bouts:
-Frank Shamrock vs. Renzo Gracie
-David Loiseau vs. Joey Villasenor
-Antonio Silva vs. Wes "Cabbage" Correira
-Gina Carano vs. Julie Kedzie
-Charles Bennett vs. K.J. Noons

Preliminary Bouts:
-Javier Vazquez vs. Adriano Periera
-Mike Pyle vs. Ross Ebanez
-John Shackelford vs. Edson Berto
-Bo Cantrell vs. Tim Persey
-Riki Fukuda vs. Seth Kleinbeck

Show to air from 10PM-12 on Showtime. The main card will be live, while the preliminary fights will be online at their website

http://www.elitexc.com/

The most hilarious part of this is the two announcers signed so far. Mario Lopez (Waiting for the first Saved by the Bell joke), and Bill Goldberg. Um.. hope they have a good MMA guy in the wings.. Thank god it's FRANK Shamrock and Renzo Gracie, we almost had our first Senior MMA event

[Travis]

Isn't Cro Cop a heavyweight? Figure maybe he and Arlovski face off, winner of that taking on whoever wins between Sylvia and Coutoure?

I know on the PPV they talked about Jackson being one of (if not) the last to beat Liddell. Sounded like he wants another tune up match or two before that rematch though.

I did really enjoy watching Silva get the semi submission victory against Lutter after all the talk about how good Lutter is on the ground and then him showing up overweight. Can't imagine Dana White is going to be knocking down his door for another fight anytime soon.

[Fighter of Foo]

Was going to post one of these myself.

Agree with everything above. Edgar vs. Griffin was amazing, esp. since Edgar was a farily big underdog going in.

I can't imagine them messing around with Cro Cop too long. The guy is immensely talented, marketable and is in a weak-ish division.

Mario Lopez?????

[Desmond]

Mirko coming out to the Pride theme made mark out like a little kid. My buddy who has never watched a full ppv and up until recently hasn't seen very much MMA at all remarked that it appeared as if he was hunting poor Sanchez simply in order to eat him. Just devasting, cold, calculating skill, on that man.

I certainly hope that Zuffa can work out a longer contract with Cro Cop as I don't see them wanting to give him a title shot before they extend his deal or purchase Pride outright.

[Desmond]

Dola, and Mauro Ranallo has just been added to the Elite announce team.

[JeffNights]

Originally Posted by Desmond

I certainly hope that Zuffa can work out a longer contract with Cro Cop as I don't see them wanting to give him a title shot before they extend his deal or purchase Pride outright.

Well, it is a six fight deal....his next opponnet is largely speculated to be the undefeated but young Jake Obrien, after that he gets the Sylvia/Couture winner, which he wallops and claims the belt, so thats at least three title defenses untill his current contract is up.

In short, six fights for a main event guy is like two years.

[Desmond]

D'oh. I thought it was a 3 fight deal, my bad.

[bbor]

Is'nt Couture retired?

[Desmond]

He was/is but he's coming out of retirement to try and take the belt from Sylvia. I would never discount a guy with a pedigree like Coutre has, but this fight has all the signs of them just wanting to get Randy a big payday all over it.

And I really don't wanna see Randy get obliterated by Mirko.

[dubb93]

Randy will not fight Mirko. Randy was KO'ed by Chuck, imagine what Mirko would do to him. Different weight class, different level. If you don't think so, watch Mirko's last fight with Wanderlei.

The UFC will not be putting LHW's against Mirko after that fight.(EDIT: This is in reference to Mirko vs. Chuck, not a potential Mirko vs. Randy fight as I'm sure Randy has eaten himself up to around 240 or so since retirement.) It just simply is not safe.

Incase you have not seen it, here it is. Keep in mind Wanderlei is very possibly the best LHW in the world. He's beaten Rampage and eveyone else thrown at him and actually won the LHW GP that Chuck was involved in several years ago.

NSFW

hxxp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MY_gVEZnYZU&mode=related&search=

Again, that is what Mirko does to LHW's.

[dubb93]

Originally Posted by SirFozzie

Cro Cop looked DOMINANT, but this was a mismatch. Wonder if they are going to give Cro Cop a couple more victims before they through him at Liddell.

I think despite Rampage looking less then brilliant in his win, they're going to fast track him at Sylvia, especially if Couture doesn't beat him at UFC 68.. the HW division is slow right now.

Didn't catch all of that the first time, but you have that completely backwards. Cro Cop is a heavyweight like Sylvia, while Rampage is a LHW like Liddell.

Rampage is just there b/c he KTFO of Chuck a few years ago on a PRIDE PPV. While Cro Cop is there to give the heavyweight division some cred. And the fact that his KO's will be so marketable. BTW, anyone see the payouts for UFC 67?

Title Match & Main Event Fighters

-Anderson Silva: $71,000 (3rd UFC fight; defeated Travis Lutter)

-Travis Lutter: $18,000 (5th UFC fight; lost to Anderson Silva)


Main Card Fighters

-Mirko Cro Cop: $350,000 flat fee (1st UFC fight; defeated Eddie Sanchez)

-Quinton Jackson: $170,000 (1st UFC fight; defeated Marvin Eastman)

-Eddie Sanchez: $30,000 flat fee (2nd UFC fight; lost to Mirko Cro Cop)

-Marvin Eastman: $30,000 (3rd UFC fight; lost to Quinton Jackson)

-Patrick Cote: $20,000 (5th UFC fight; defeated Scott Smith)

-Scott Smith: $12,000 (3rd UFC fight; lost to Patrick Cote)

-Roger Huerta: $12,000 (2nd UFC fight; defeated John Halverson)

-John Halverson: $3,000 (1st UFC fight; lost to Roger Huerta)


Preliminary Match Fighters

-Lyoto Machida: $36,000 (1st UFC fight; defeated Sam Hoger)

-Jorge Rivera: $12,000 (7th UFC fight; lost to Terry Martin)

-Tyson Griffin: $9,000 (2nd UFC fight; lost to Frank Edgar)

-Terry Martin: $8,000 (3rd UFC fight; defeated Jorge Rivera)

-Sam Hoger: $7,000 (4th UFC fight; lost to Lyoto Machida)

-Frank Edgar: $6,000 (1st UFC fight; defeated Tyson Griffin)

-Dustin Hazelett: $6,000 (2nd UFC fight; defeated Diego Saraiva)

-Diego Saraiva: $3,000 (1st UFC fight; lost to Dustin Hazelett)

Disclosed Fighter Payroll: $803,000

*I bolded the three major newcomers who debuted on this card*

Really crazy money Cro Cop got there. Chuck makes 250K a fight, Tito about 200K, Tim Sylvia 120K, Matt Hughes 75K, GSP about 60K, and guys like Diego, Vera, Rashad, Forrest are all around 25-40K a fight.

In fact, the only guy I've seen get that kind of money was a one time thing in the UFC. Royce Gracie got paid 400K to fight Matt Hughes. In other words, without ever having a UFC fight, they made Cro Cop their highest paid fighter BY FAR.

Another fact, the entire payroll for UFC 64 in which Anderson Silva beat Rich Franklin and Sean Sherk beat K-Flo in the title fights was only 209K. He also makes more than GSP-Matt Hughes-Tim Sylvia-Jeff Monson-Brandon Vera-Frank Mir were payed combined to be the 3 headline fights in UFC 65. 350-342

[Edward64]

Does anyone else wish for the old UFC format, no weight classes, multiple fights a night ... anything goes except for fishhooking, eye gouging and a couple more rules?

I understand the need for more rules for whatever State agency to allow to expansion of the franchise and certainly makes sense monetarily.

I appreciate what UFC has done for the MA and Traditional MA worlds.

But it seems so far away from its original premise? All things held equal, prefer the old way of running UFC.

[Fighter of Foo]

Well the payouts and rule changes are all a consequence of MMA going mainstream very, very quickly. Fighter salaries are going to exponentially increase for the forseeable future. 350 will probably seem low in a year or two one the next round of contracts cycles through.

[SirFozzie]

With the HBO deal, the Ultimate Fighter, and the PPV's doing gangbuster business.. this is a great time for the UFC.

[SirFozzie]

BTW, here's the rumored fights for UFC 70 (which will be held in Manchester, England!)


Tito Ortiz (pretty much confirmed) vs. TBA [rumoured Forrest Griffin]
Mirko Cro Cop vs TBA [Cheick Congo rumoured]
Michael Bisping vs. TBA

Dennis Siver vs. TBA
David Lee vs. TBA
Cheick Kongo vs. TBA
Abdul Mohamed vs. TBA
Jess Liaudin vs. TBA
Elvis Sinosic vs. TBA

[JeffNights]

Guys one thing about the standard UFC pay is that in particular, Liddel, ortiz, hughes and a couple other also have PPV buy rate percentages in addition to their contract pay, since PPV buys are not immeadiately avalible, they are not required to be reported to the NASC. For instance, UFC 66, liddel made 1.4 million and ortiz slighty more than a million after thier PPV bonus money. Hughes gets the same deal, although not as high a percentage.

[Dutch]

I have just recently gotten into the UFC (we get the events free in the military). I thought Matt Hughes was amazing until St. Pierra kicked his butt. Have either of them fought since then and when will they either of them fight again?

[dervack]

Originally Posted by Dutch

I have just recently gotten into the UFC (we get the events free in the military). I thought Matt Hughes was amazing until St. Pierra kicked his butt. Have either of them fought since then and when will they either of them fight again?

GSP is fighting on April 7th as of now, Matt Hughes on March 3rd.

[Oilers9911]

Originally Posted by Edward64

Does anyone else wish for the old UFC format, no weight classes, multiple fights a night ... anything goes except for fishhooking, eye gouging and a couple more rules?

I understand the need for more rules for whatever State agency to allow to expansion of the franchise and certainly makes sense monetarily.

I appreciate what UFC has done for the MA and Traditional MA worlds.

But it seems so far away from its original premise? All things held equal, prefer the old way of running UFC.

If you want UFC to go back to that then keep waiting. The only reason UFC came out from the underground is because of the current rules. The way it used to be was just barbaric and it would never fly on any tv network that way. Someone would have eventually died in the ring that way. Many mainstream media types still see it that way and it is a fight for MMA to gain wide acceptance and they don't want to go back to the bad old days.

[SirFozzie]

BTW, UFC70 is rumored to be the first HBO UFC card

[Hammer]

OK, where are the sherdoggers?

I wouldn't say this at the dog for obvious reasons, but Sylvia is really going to shock some people against Cro Cop. Couture stands almost no chance of beating Sylvia - if Monson couldn't what chance does he have? Couture is Monson but smaller with weaker subs.

Sylvia's pure size will throw Cro Cop off a little. His LHK will be less of a weapon. I see this fight much like Sylvia AA 3.

The fight I really want to see is Mirko versus AA. I think Cro Cop takes it, but it should be a war.

I would be really surprised to see Crop face Kongo. Kongo is an outstanding striker with next to no ground game. He stands a slim chance of stopping Cro Cop, and that would really stuff the UFCs plan to build this guy up.

I'd expect a TUFer, maybe Brad Imes or Dan Christianson. Maybe Frank Mir.

I hear Vera is likely on the way out of the UFC, real shame, he would have been a great add to the mix. In my mind he has as good a shot of beating Liddell as anyone, he could cut to 205 easy.

[Hammer]

I have just recently gotten into the UFC (we get the events free in the military). I thought Matt Hughes was amazing until St. Pierra kicked his butt. Have either of them fought since then and when will they either of them fight again?

Hughes fights Chris Lyttle (TUF 5) and GSP fights Matt Serra (TUF 5 winner) shortly. Both should win comfortably.

If the fights go to plan, Hughes will face GSP in Montreal for a rematch.

Diego Sanchez and Josh Koscheck fight soon also, the winner of this likely gets the winner of Hughes/GSP.

[Calis]

Cro Cop will not face Arlovski before he fights Sylvia, I just can't see it happening on the off chance that AA beats him. No one wants to see Sylvia-Arlovski IV anytime soon.

I don't see Sylvia beating Cro Cop either, the reach will be annoying but Cro Cop has handled some large boys before, and I think he'll chop Tim down with Leg kicks. I think his speed and precision will be more of a factor than Tim's size. Who knows though, it's definitely not a gimmee.

I'm really hoping Rampage can get back on form and really shine, I'd love for him to be the one to finally dethrone Chuck. He's just got to get the fire back he lost after being annihilated by Wandy and Shogun. He matches up well with Chuck though. I'd love to see a repeat of their first meeting though.

We damn well better get Fedor vs. Cro Cop II sometime in the next couple years one way or the other.

[Calis]

In case anyone hear hasn't heard or is interested, tonight at 10 pm est EliteXC will having it's inaugural card on Showtime. So kind of neat, the main event is going to be Frank Shamrock vs. Renzo Gracie, and they also have David Loiseau, Cabbage, Crazy Horse, and some other people. So not too horrible for a first time card.

The cooler thing is the undercard is available for free on the internet is playing right now, if you go to proelite.com right now you can watch it. It's not a horribly low budget deal, and the first fight was actually pretty exciting.

Just a heads up, I'm all about getting any MMA I can.

Now bring on next Saturday and Pride!

[DaddyTorgo]

lol @ how the ads for UFC 68 try to portray Coutoure as having a chance against Sylvia.

[SirFozzie]

Here's the fights for the third season of BodogFight (Season 2 will start airing shortly on the old PAX Network, now ION)


Heavyweight Bouts

Roy Nelson (7-0) vs. Mario "Big Hurt" Rinaldi (5-0)

Mark Burch (6-2) vs. Yoshiki Takahashi (28-20)

Kellan Flukinger (0-0) vs. Miodrag "Pele" Petkovic (13-5)

Jeremiah Constant (4-0) vs. Dan Evensen (5-2)

Michael Alden (1-0) vs. Daniel Puder (4-0)

Light Heavyweight Bouts

Todd Gouwenberg (5-2) vs. Michael Patt (9-1)

Francis Carmont (9-4) vs. Jeff Ford (2-1)

David Avellan (1-0) vs. Antony Rea (11-7)

Moise Rimbon (9-6) vs. Alex "the Brazilian Killa" Stiebling (17-9)

Middleweight Bouts

Tim "Wrecking Machine" McKenzie (10-3) vs. Chael Sonnen (16-8)

Pierre Guillet (10-4) vs. Trevor Prangley (14-4)

Matt "the Hardest" Ewin (16-8) vs. Andrei Semenov (25-8)

Andy Foster (8-1) vs. Grzegorz Jakubowski (17-3)

Izuru Takeuchi (20-8) vs. Kyacey "Ice Cold" Uscola (11-7)

Eugene "the Wolf" Jackson (15-7) vs. Diego Vitosky (2-3)

Welterweight Bouts

Eddie Alvarez (9-0) vs. Scott Henze (17-6)

Dustin "Clean" Denes (12-3) vs. Nick "the Goat" Thompson (30-9)

Stephen Haigh (3-2) vs. Takuya Wada (13-7)

Jose "Pele" Landi-Jons (22-12) vs. Phil Norman (5-0)

Steve "Red Nose" Berger (17-15) vs. Piotr Jakaczynski (0-0)

Jake Ellenberger (14-1) vs. Zach Light (3-3)

Jake Shields (16-4) vs. Ray Steinbeiss (8-3)

Lightweight Bouts

Brad "One Punch" Pickett (9-2) vs. JR Sims (1-1)

Nick Agallar (17-4) vs. Ryan Bow (14-7)

Sami Aziz (0-0) vs. Rafael Dias (7-1)

Tyler "TNT" Jackson (7-3) vs. Kyle Watson (8-5)

David Love (4-5) vs. Atsuhiro Tsuboi (5-8)

Female Bouts

Shanya Bazler (0-0) vs. Tara LaRosa (12-1)

Jan Finney (3-2) vs. Tama Chan (12-5)

Rosi Sexton (5-1) vs. Windy Tomomi (9-7)

Carina Damm (5-2) vs. Molly Helsel (3-5)

[SirFozzie]

That is DEFINITELY not how they wanted the first Showtime card to end

[SirFozzie]

The ELITE XC main event ends in a DQ, with Shamrock DQ'd for injuring Renzo Gracie with knees to the head/neck (illegal on the ground, even if you're the one on the bottom)

[DaddyTorgo]

shamrocks=cheaters

[JonInMiddleGA]

Just in case this might be useful for anyone here.

2-for-1 ticket special offers for the Feb 23rd IFL card at the Gwinnett Arena.
Just follow this link & use the password "WOLFPACK"

Card includes
Carlos Newton's Dragons vs Matt Lindland's Wolfpack
and Igor Zinoviev's Red Bears vs Linzo Gracie's Pitbulls

Price ranges are $85, $65, and $45

[Calis]

Anyone catch Pride 33 this weekend?

Biggest night of upsets ever.

I knew that Diaz wasn't getting enough respect against Gomi, and thought that Hendo had a slight chance, but who'd have thought? The biggest shocker of the evening though was Little Nog getting knocked out, a Nog knocked out! It's insanity, and by a judo guy no less.

The Gomi/Diaz match ranks up there as one of the weirdest fights I've ever seen, just very bizarre fight from Gomi from the start. Gomi just look comletely unprepared, it was embarrassing.

Silva is just not himself anymore, he spent more time backing up then going forward and his punches just seem to be getting wilder, I think his time is passing. Can we get Shogun a title shot now? I was really looking forward to seeing Silva/Little Nog or a Shogun/Nog rematch, but last night put a damper on that for a while. Silva did look bad, and I believe said he was very sick at the time, who knows if that's true but he looked very off. Honestly though I'd like to see him out of the running for a while, let some other guys in.

Dan Henderson now as the Welterweigt AND Middleweight champ of Pride, pretty impessive.

Very fun card overall, still can't believe it all.

[dervack]

Thought it was a very boring card except for the last 2 fights. And for anyone who doesn't think Iceman would destroy Silva, please watch Silva's last two fights against Cro Cop and Henderson. Chuck would destroy him.

[Calis]

Yeah, not many great fights in it overall, but I enjoyed it for the sheer wackiness.

I do agree that Chuck would beat Silva now, especially with the form Silva's shown lately, but I think using his fight against Cro Cop as proof is a bit off, because Chuck would fair little better against a Cro Cop who was as motivated and intense as he was against Silva. I'm ready for Silva to step down and let Shogun into the limelight, rather than having Shogun move up to heavyweight which I don't think will work as well.

I'm getting annoyed by Pride's absurd scheme of title defenses. How many non-title fights can you have your champions in? It seems like the champs average about one title fight every 18 months. This was Gomi's second loss like that in a relatively short period of time. It doesn't look good for their champs.

I wonder when Fedor's due back? I'd really like to see a Fedor vs. Barnett fight this year.

Man, now we've got the Sylvia/Couture debacle to look forward to this weekend.

[SirFozzie]

Fedor's fighting for BoDogFight in... april or may.

Edit: He's fighting former USA Olympic Medalist Matt Lindland on the 4/14 BodogFight PPV (9 hour delay, the PPV is taking place in St Petersburg Russia)

BTW, if you guys didn't know, BodogFight is producing a weekly show on the old PAX network (now Ion). Loosely based on the Ultimate fighter

[Dutch]

Alright, UFC! I can't wait. I don't get advertisements for it over here, so I never really know when the next one is due. I always forget. Thanks for keeping this one bumped.

[SirFozzie]

Dutch: Keep an eye on sherdog and or MMATorch. The wrestling board I post at (DVDVR) also has a MMA forum

[TLK]

Way to go Randy.... Sylvia looked horrible. It's a shame that Randy will have to face CroCop in the near future.

[DaddyTorgo]

Originally Posted by TheLionKing

Way to go Randy.... Sylvia looked horrible. It's a shame that Randy will have to face CroCop in the near future.

crocop might KILL randy

[BigMak]

Couldn't believe how easy Randy handled him

[kingfc22]

Randy was incredible tonight. From the very first right-hand to the end, he just flat out dominated.

[BYU 14]

Originally Posted by BigMak

Couldn't believe how easy Randy handled him

That was a definite shocker, considering Sylvia is similar in style to Liddell only taller I thought he would give Couture big problems...The one intangible though is that Liddell is probably the most accurate striker in MMA and pretty much everything he throws can hurt you.

Big props to Couture, sets up a big Money fight with either Crocop or Andrei Arlovsky. I think Andrei is a better matchup style wise for Couture. He fights Crocop and it could get ugly.

[Deattribution]

Originally Posted by BYU 14

Big props to Couture, sets up a big Money fight with either Crocop or Andrei Arlovsky. I think Andrei is a better matchup style wise for Couture. He fights Crocop and it could get ugly.

Cro Cop is already in line for a title shot as long as he wins his next fight at UFC 70.

[Calis]

That was the most I've marked out for an MMA fight in a helluva long time. Great job by Randy, I didn't think he could do it but I sure was pulling for him. Everyone watching with me here was up on there feet after the first few seconds.

God I hate Sylvia.

Randy looked very very smooth. Great bobbing and weaving, I'm just shocked. Wow.

Yeah, I feel bad for Randy facing off against Cro Cop, but wow what a night for him.

[Dutch]

Just finished watching it. A pretty good event, the Matt Hughes fight was interesting from a technical standpoint, but boring for the fans. I was definately looking for more from him.

I was glad Sylvia got man-handled. He's not a great fighter, just an ackward fighter, and it showed vs the sound Couture. I don't think Couture could handle speed and stamina at his age, so I think for him to win, it was more of the perfect storm scenario going up against a slow guy.

Anyway...way more interesting than any boxing match I've ever watched and with so many matches on a card it's always money well spent (although UFC gives the overseas military these PPV's free of charge--so props to them.) I'll definately continue to follow this growing sport when I return stateside.

Watching the little Danish kid take those heavy punches, get woozy, and then submitting the bigger opponent by sleeper hold was an amazing turn-around. I love this shit!

[SirFozzie]

BTW, multiple sites are reporting that the UFC did over $200 million in buys over 2006.

[Neuqua]

http://sports.espn.go.com/sports/news/story?id=2814235

Source: UFC buys Pride for less than $70M


NEW YORK -- The majority owners of Ultimate Fighting Championship have agreed to buy their biggest mixed martial arts rival, Pride Fighting Championships, in a deal that will establish megafights among the outfits' titleholders and possibly attract huge pay-per-view audiences.


"This is really going to change the face of MMA. Literally creating a sport that could be as big around the world as soccer. I liken it somewhat to when the NFC and AFC came together to create the NFL."
-- Lorenzo Fertitta, one of UFC's majority owners
Company executives declined to comment on the sales price, but a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press that brothers Lorenzo and Frank Fertitta will purchase the Japan-based Pride for less than $70 million. The person was not authorized to speak to reporters and spoke on condition of anonymity.

The deal was completed Tuesday and was announced during a news conference in Tokyo, where Lorenzo Fertitta has been negotiating with Nobuyuki Sakakibara, the majority owner and chief executive of Dream Stage Entertainment Inc., Pride's owner.

"We have been talking to Pride for probably about 11 months," Lorenzo Fertitta said. "It's been a long, drawn-out process but we finally were able to put the two brands together."

To buy the company, the brothers created a new entity called Pride FC Worldwide Holdings LLC. The newly formed company will take over Pride assets, including its trademarks, video library and valuable roster of fighters, from Dream Stage. The Fertitta brothers, who own Las Vegas-based Zuffa LLC, the parent company of UFC, intend to keep the well-known Pride name and promote fights under that brand.

The acquisition marks a new phase in the brothers' quest to dominate the burgeoning world of mixed martial arts since they bought the struggling UFC in 2001.

"This is really going to change the face of MMA," Lorenzo Fertitta said. "Literally creating a sport that could be as big around the world as soccer. I liken it somewhat to when the NFC and AFC came together to create the NFL."

The deal allows the Fertitta brothers to broker the biggest MMA fights possible in the near future, increasing their influence in this sports entertainment business.

"We will be able to literally put on the fights that everyone wants to see," Lorenzo Fertitta said. "It will allow us to put on some of the biggest fights ever."

In the past, there has been at least one case in which Pride and UFC couldn't hammer out a deal to put their top fighters in the ring together. With Pride in their pocket, the Fertitta brothers intend to ensure that never happens again.

The sale gives Pride more financial backing to expand the business internationally after suffering a recent financial blow.

Major sponsor Fuji Television Network Inc. dropped Pride in June after a tabloid linked Pride to the Japanese mob -- something Sakakibara has denied vigorously. To help bolster Pride, the company staged two PPV fights in Las Vegas. Neither was a financial success. The fights gained exposure for Pride but lost money, making the sale of Pride more likely.

"I think it certainly weakened their position," Lorenzo Fertitta said. "One of our goals is to get back on a major platform back here in Japan."

Lorenzo Fertitta said he'll be looking to expand Pride internationally.

Buying Pride is the latest in a series of acquisitions that the brothers have made in the last six months. Zuffa snapped up World Extreme Cagefighting and World Fighting Alliance last year.

Similar to Pride, buying WFA gave UFC the rights to a popular fighter named Quinton "Rampage" Jackson. Jackson will face UFC's most popular fighter, Chuck Liddell, the current light heavyweight champ in Las Vegas, on May 26 on PPV.

In the combat world, the Pride deal leaves a fragmented group of upstarts and K-1, another Japanese company that promotes fighters skilled in various forms of kick boxing.

Thanks to a surge in popularity, the brothers' investment in UFC and MMA in general has begun to pay off.

Last year, UFC cracked $200 million in PPV revenue, putting it on par with World Wrestling Entertainment Inc.

UFC stages fights in arenas across the country and airs a clutch of successful television shows on Spike TV. It has also opened an office in London, looking toward establishing itself internationally.

The brothers also run Station Casinos Inc. in Las Vegas. Lorenzo Fertitta is president and Frank Fertitta is chairman and chief executive of Station Casinos, a public company that was recently agreed to be purchased by a private equity investor group that includes key members of the Fertitta family.

[moriarty]

Originally Posted by Neuqua

http://sports.espn.go.com/sports/news/story?id=2814235

This is big news. For anyone who hasn't seen Pride, Pride has some of the best fighters in the world. This merger will allow the best of the UFC to fight the best of Pride in a Superbowl type setup. Not sure how they will handle it, but it should lead for some great future match ups.

[DeToxRox]

Fedor is going to Pride and it's rumored New Years Eve in Japan he'll take on Cro Cop.

That will be the most insane UFC Fight in a LONG TIME .. if not ever.

[SirFozzie]

The good news is that the weight classes and most of the rules are going to be standard across Pride and UFC (140, 155, 170, 205, 265, Super heavy). This will see soccerkicks and stomps to a grounded opponent will no longer be allowed in PRIDE

[DeToxRox]

And dola

On May 26th, Rampage is going to put Chuck out of his misery.